Lecithin and vegetable oil compositions in aerosol dispensers have been employed as lubricants or anti-stick coatings for cooking surfaces. Such formulations are applied to a cooking surface such as a pan, casserole, etc. in order to prevent the food from sticking to the heated surface of the pan during the cooking process. A commercial product of this type is PAM which basically comprises an aerosol formulation of vegetable oil containing lecithin dissolved in a mixture of fluorinated propellants. The lecithin or lecithin/vegetable oil is soluble in fluorocarbon propellants and provides a true solution of the lecithin in the propellants. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 2,796,363.
However, prior art aerosol-dispensed lecithin-containing formulations such as those disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 2,796,363 employ Freon or similar normally gaseous fluorocarbons, under substantial pressure as propellants. Due to Federal legislation which has greatly restricted the use of fluorocarbon propellants, there has been a need in the art for aerosol dispensable lecithin formulations which do not utilize a fluorocarbon propellant, and yet provide a nonflammable, quick-drying and thin coating of lecithin which does not foam when applied to cooking surfaces.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a lecithin-based aerosol composition which may be dispensed from conventional pressurized aerosol containers to provide a quick-drying, thin, even film, which is non-foaming, nonflammable and imparts anti-stick properties to cookware or to other surfaces to which it may be applied.